A butter-yellow mare walked through the market of Ponyville, shifting her eyes side to side. Her pink mane was draped over her face, barely letting her see out through it. While moving forward, her tail and feet scuffed the ground, making a scraped clopping sound.
She frantically swerved right and left, worrying over the constant stream of ponies on the road. Her eyes shifted up towards the sky from time to time, staring blankly up at the clouds; sighing as she moved towards a new spot to have a peek.
She sat down in a corner, huddling in the shadows. Peeking out towards the street. Her eyes followed the movements of ponies passing by, cringing if anyone looked towards her.
“Fluttershy?”
Fluttershy jolted about, looking around frantically. Perking her ears up, she scanned the area.
“Fluttershy... up here.”
Her eyes fixated to a blue mare fluttering over her, looking down with an eyebrow raised. Her rainbow colored mane and tail danced as she placed her hooves in front of Fluttershy.
Rainbow Dash stared towards her friend with a smug grin. “Woah Flutters... did a squirrel scare you or something?”
Fluttershy stared at Dash with pupils big as dinner plates. Huddling together more, her hooves scraped the road as she pressed herself further into the shadows. Dash’ grin faded, her eyebrows sinking down. She stepped carefully towards the shadows, lowering her head to see Fluttershy clearer.
“F-Fluttershy... what's wrong?”
Fluttershy shook as Dash spoke up, lifting her hooves. Squealing as she looked through her mane, shivering while the blue mare attempted to get closer.
Dash grabbed hold of Fluttershy. “It’s me! Rainbow Dash! Don’t you recognize me?”
Her eyes stared at Dash, glistening as tears trickled down her cheek. She heaved for air while flailing her hooves around, her wings fluttering against the wall. Her neck stretched up letting go of a small scream before she collapsed in Dash’ arms.
Dash’ eye’s widened as she looked down at Fluttershy, lying there, completely still. Dash carefully nudged her side. “Fluttershy?”
Her heart started to race. Fluttershy wasn’t moving. Looking around desperately, Dash spotted a nearby rope and using that, made a cradle to place her in.
She tied a loop around herself, flapping her wings as fast as she could. Straining to take off, she could feel the estranged glares of other ponies looking at her.
Dash felt her wings burning, straining to fly forward. She squinted her eyes, focusing her attention towards the hospital. She looked down at Fluttershy who lay still with her eyes closed.
“Don’t worry Fluttershy, everything will be alright!”
The town was but a fast blur as she neared the hospital, stopping in front of the door, she carefully put Fluttershy down. Dash ran through the door frantically looking around the lobby for somepony to help her.
She bellowed from the top of her lungs. “Somepony! Help... my friend, she’s sick!”
A group of ponies dressed in white garments dashed over to her, signaling that she should lead them out.
She watched as they put Fluttershy on a stretcher and went inside, Dash followed behind them all the way to the ICU, however a nurse stopped her at the door. “I’m sorry Miss, but you’re not allowed in here.”
Dash looked at the nurse. “But... I need to be there for her.”
The nurse shook her head before pointing towards the waiting room. “Please, let the doctors do their job, they will come get you once they know more.”
She sighed as her ears flopped back. “Alright...”
Dash trotted back and forth in the hospital waiting room, her thoughts wandered as she froze for a bit. Biting her lip, she looked towards the ICU.
She flinched as she felt her wings burning, She sat down, muttering to herself. “I hope she’s alright...”
Dash sprung up as she heard a door opening, her eyes focused on a small stallion standing in the doorway. He slowly approached her with his eyes fixated on a chart.
As he lifted his head, Dash could see a grim expression smeared over his face. He looked at her behind a lime green mask, His eyebrows arched down as he raised his voice.
“Dash, Rainbow?”
She slowly nodded.
“You did the right thing, Dash. Although she has not had any physical harm done to her. She has had a nervous breakdown, causing her frontal-lobe to go into overdrive. If you hadn't brought her in, her brain would eventually have cooked itself. But as of now, she’s stable.”
Dash let out a small sigh, folding her wings together. She felt her heartbeat start to calm down, tears starting to press up behind her eyes.
She smiled towards the doctor, while a tear trickled slowly down her cheek. “Thank you...”
“No need to thank me Miss, Dash. I was only doing my job.”
She enclosed the doctor with her hooves, giving him a short hug. “No, you did much more than that, thank you for saving my friend.” She halted her sentence, turning her head away. “I’m sorry, I don’t usually get emotional like this. It’s just... I don’t know what I would do without her... so thank you.”
He smiled a little as his cheeks turned a slight tint of red, hiding behind the chart he stuttered. “M-miss Dash... if you want... you can sit by her till she wakes up.”
Dash’ eyes lit up, glistening with a small flutter of light. “Really?!”
“Yes... just remember that she needs to rest, so no loud noises or hasty movements.”
Dash’ answer could be heard muffled through the door leading to Fluttershy’s room. “I will!”
The door creaked open, slowly letting a small ray of light into the room. Dash carefully peeked her head through the door, letting go of a small gasp as she saw Fluttershy lying in a bed close to the window.
As she moved closer, she heard her hooves echoing through the room. She saw her friend hooked up to different monitors, letting out quick beeps to show that everything was normal. Small tubes went out from her hooves and up into small bags of clear liquid.
Dash sat down, leaning gently towards the bed. Staring blankly at Fluttershy, she felt a lump growing in her chest.
She sat next to the bed for awhile, watching as Fluttershy’s chest softly rose up and down in tact with the small beeps. She saw her eyes move from side to side under her eyelids. Sighing as she looked around, Dash spotted Fluttershy's hoof lying on the sheets, and placed hers softly atop it. Her lips quivered as she whispered.
“Please, Fluttershy... Please be alright.”
Dash was awoken by a stream of light gleaming through the window. Looking around, she struggled to get her eyes to focus. She let go of a long drawn yawn, smacking her lips together. Spreading her wings, she felt a small burn, they still ached.
She felt a soft tap on her shoulder, turning around, her face lit up. In front of her sat Fluttershy, looking towards her with her head tilted slightly to the side, while smiling softly as only Fluttershy could.
“Fluttershy! You’re awake.” Dash said while enclosing her friend in her hooves. “You scared me, Fluttershy.”
Fluttershy’s smile faded, staring at Dash with glimmer in her eyes. “U-um... yes, I’m terribly sorry about that.”
She smirked towards her. “Heh, no worries Fluttershy. Like the best flier in Ponyville'd leave you hanging!”
Fluttershy smiled carefully while she turned her head down. “Thank you, Rainbow Dash”
Dash’ smirk faded, she arched her eyes while looking at the yellow mare, sitting in her bed, staring dreamily at the morning sun. “Fluttershy... what happened?”
Her ears flopped back; she shrunk down under her sheets. Her eyes slowly landed on Dash, glistening on the verge of tears. “Um... I-I don’t want to talk about it...”
Dash let out a small sigh. “I won't force you Fluttershy...” She halted her sentence, cringing as her voice cracked. ”But you really scared me...”
She turned towards Dash, shifting her eyes around the room. Pulling herself out of cover, she sighed. “Y-you’re right, Rainbow Dash, I’m sorry.”
She swallowed as she turned away. “I don’t remember much from my foalhood. My earliest memory is from when I was around ten years old.” Fluttershy halted her sentence, swallowing once more; a tear trickled down her chin. “But yesterday, while I was at the market. I saw an image of a timberwolf...”
She stared out through the window, the machines around the room beeped faster. Her voice broke as she continued. “That image triggered a memory I had repressed...
A faint sound of hooves hitting rocks echoed through the sundown. A snow-white mare jolted over a grassy knoll. Her fiery red mane fluttered behind her, weaving itself in the wind. Her eyes squinting as she galloped.
In the vast landscape a hollow bone-chilling howl echoed over. A pack of timberwolves leaped through the gaps of the mountain. Stopping at the end of a cliff, gnarling in the air, before setting off again.
The snow-white mare stopped in her tracks, letting go of a small squeal. Blood was rippling from a gash on her back. Her breath was heavy as her yellow eyes shifted around.
She let go of a sigh of relief as she spotted a tree with a hole in it’s trunk. She limped over towards it as fast as she could. She snapped her head back, watching over towards the edge of the forest. Her eyes widened as she heard the faint sound of paws hitting the ground.
She jumped towards the tree, stuffing a small bundle of clothing away. She breathed heavily as she looked down in in the hole. At the bottom of it, a small filly stared up towards her with a set of big cyan eyes. A tiny yellow hoof stretched its way up towards her.
Her tears flowed freely down her cheek as she watched the small filly looking at her with a scared and confused expression over her face.
She nuzzled her forehead, smiling, as she whispered. “Hush now... everything will be alright.”
She left as the howls came closer, leaving the small filly to herself. She let go of a heart piercing cry as she faded away.
Huddled inside a ball of clothing, the small filly lay completely still. Her ears shot up as she listened to a scraping sound, boring through the walls of the trunk.
The creatures outside let go of a howl, shaking the insides of the trunk. The sound of paws faded away.
Time passed by, her ears started to fold back. Nothing could be heard but some faint rustling in the leaves, followed by small chirps. She let out a silent yawn, smacking her lips together. She squinted while rubbing her hooves on her chin, she ruffled around in her ball of clothing before dozing off.
A stream of light gleamed up, hitting the small filly’s face. She slowly opened her eyes, looking out towards the clear sky. Her ears scanned for sounds, only to be met by a deafening silence.
The small filly landed softly on the ground, listening. Looking around she saw nopony. Trees around the small patch of grass towered over her, creaking as a gust of wind blew through the forest; she shivered.
She raised her hoof to fend off the sun. “Mom?”
She sat completely still, listening, waiting for an answer.
Holding her breath, she felt a lump growing in her throat. “Mom?!”
Her shout echoed through the forest, reaching to the very edge, followed by silence. Her eyes locked into the forest, small beams of light penetrating through the treetops. Further in, she saw nothing but a black veil. She scrunched together, hiding under branches, shivering as a howl could be heard in the far.
Feeling something pressing on behind her eyes, she squeaked. “Mom... where are you? Please come back...”
Fluttershy slowly closed her eyes; her body sank down between the sheets. While she gasped for air, the machines around the bed started to beep in rapid succession.
Dash reached out, holding onto Fluttershy’s shoulder. “F-Fluttershy?”
Her heart attempted to jump out of her chest, her eyes widened as she heard only one long beep, no ticking.
“Fluttershy? Somepony! PLEASE HELP!”
Her shout echoed through the halls of the hospital, followed by the sound of hooves hitting the floor in rapid succession. The door swung open as three ponies entered, dashing over to Fluttershy.
The doctor from earlier grabbed a hold of Dash. “Please, Miss Dash. Move to the side.”
Dash stood and watched as the doctors huddled over Fluttershy, giving her all sort of medicine, heart compression and dousing her head in cold water.
She felt an uneasy feeling growing in her stomach as she watched her friend fight for her life. Dash’ thoughts wandered off, she saw images of Fluttershy smiling at her, no matter how much she failed. Fluttershy waiting patiently while she was off taking one of her naps, only to hug her when she finally arrived.
Fluttershy never asked for anything from her, she only gave herself. Always smiling to everypony, always willing to help.
Tears trickled down her cheek as she realised how much she needed Fluttershy. But when Fluttershy needed her the most, she couldn’t do anything more than just helplessly stand there, watching.
Dash stood in the door, looking back at Fluttershy. “Don’t worry, Fluttershy. I’ll find a way to help you.”
